Steve Clarke: the perplexed frown of the unimaginative midwit manager
Scotland are out of the World Cup after a rather pathetic campaign where they predictably lost to Morocco and got drubbed by a rather relaxed Brazil. They couldn't even get one of the eight third place slots to go through to the last 32.
Sure, they had a hard group. Brazil are Brazil and Morocco are African champions. But Scotland, apart from their cone-touting fans, never really made any impression at the World Cup.
As for the cone-touting fans, while the media may have loved that, it just reflected the trashy, proto-Third-World aspect of a Scotland whose cities are full of garbage, vandalism, beggars, and cones on the heads of statues; statues of men who achieved a lot more than the Scotland team ever did.
As for the cone-touting fans, while the media may have loved that, it just reflected the trashy, proto-Third-World aspect of a Scotland whose cities are full of garbage, vandalism, beggars, and cones on the heads of statues; statues of men who achieved a lot more than the Scotland team ever did.
"No Scotland No Party" - tossers!
The head cone, when all is said and done, is just a symbol of a kind of moronic, pissed-up "underclass supremacism" that has dragged Scotland down in the last 50 years, as it has moved from industrialism to welfarism-slash-public sector economy (i.e. crypto welfarism).
But back to the football. Scotland manager Steve Clarke has now fallen not so much on his sword — he never had one — but on, let us say, his rusty penknife and resigned.
Good riddance! He was a midwit at management and mediocre at best, which is not good enough when managing a team like Scotland with so many weaknesses.
Good riddance! He was a midwit at management and mediocre at best, which is not good enough when managing a team like Scotland with so many weaknesses.
In the wake of this abysmal World Cup performance there will be an attempt to "emphasise the positives," LOL. They will say that Clarke made "significant progress." After all, he took Scotland to two European Championship Finals (2021 & 2024) after a gap of 29 years, and finally a World Cup Finals this year after a gap of 28 years. Hail the messiah and saviour of Scottish football!
Actually, Clarke's so-called achievement is just a mirage and is simply down to UEFA and FIFA greatly expanding the number of countries that participate in these finals.
When Andy Roxborough took Scotland to the European Championship Finals in 1992, only 8 countries went. (Scotland lost to Germany and Holland but crushed Russia 3-0). When Clarke finally took Scotland back to the Euro Finals in 2021, there were three times as many countries taking part, which meant that almost all European nations that weren't Lichtenstein sent teams. To be honest, it would have been difficult not to have qualified. Same story in 2024.
When Andy Roxborough took Scotland to the European Championship Finals in 1992, only 8 countries went. (Scotland lost to Germany and Holland but crushed Russia 3-0). When Clarke finally took Scotland back to the Euro Finals in 2021, there were three times as many countries taking part, which meant that almost all European nations that weren't Lichtenstein sent teams. To be honest, it would have been difficult not to have qualified. Same story in 2024.
At both competitions, of course, Clarke's Scotland fell flat on its face. In 2021, despite playing 2 of their 3 games at home, they lost both and only got a point playing England at Wembley. While in 2024 they had a similar record — one draw, two defeats. Pathetic! Somehow Clarke retained his position, presumably because he was cheap compared to the Scottish Football Association hiring a real manager.
Members of the Clarke Cult have mistaken rising
numbers of finalists at tournaments for "success"
numbers of finalists at tournaments for "success"
Now onto Clarke's "crowning achievement," taking Scotland to its first World Cup in 28 years! Surely he deserves a knighthood for that?
Not really. When Scotland went to the World Cup in 1974 and 1978, only 16 teams from the entire world went. When they went in 1982, 1986, and 1990, it was 24 teams. They didn't go in '94, but then FIFA kindly expanded the number of countries in the Finals again to to 32 teams, helping Scotland to scrape in again.
This brings us to the latest World Cup, where a staggering 48 teams have been allowed to participate in the Finals. It is only because of this that Scotland managed to make it. If the number had remained at 32, Scotland would never have made it, as we see with their recent piss-poor performances and early exit from the competition.
Scotland's bruised pride will try to turn this mess into some kind of "glory," and Clarke will be lauded as a "great manager" who made "steady progress." But that's just emotional welfarism for a country that trashes its cities and expects success, and, when success goes elsewhere, invents myths for its monsters and fantasies for its freaks.
The idiots in Glasgow think this is cute. It is not. The Duke of Wellington actually won stuff unlike Scotland's shit football team.
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